IEC launches voter registration campaign at Wits University

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The Electoral Commission (IEC) on Tuesday launched a joint voter registration campaign with Wits University to encourage young people to cast their votes in future elections.

The campaign will include other tertiary institutions throughout the country to boost youth participation in the polls. 

The latest data by the IEC shows only 26-million South Africans are registered to vote. The commission hopes to increase this number through the initiative. 

PRESERVING DEMOCRACY

The commission's CEO Sy Mamabolo said the participation of young people in elections was vital for the preservation of democracy. 

“The primary aim of this campaign is to cultivate and instil a culture of electoral democracy and active citizenry among students in public and private institutions of higher learning, and to enhance voter registration and voter participation in Student Representative Council (SRC) elections and in national, provincial and local government elections.

“It is our belief that engaging students’ views about democracy and elections through voter education-based dialogue will enhance participation among this group of the electorate population,” said Mamabolo. 

DECIDE ON THE FUTURE YOU WANT AND GO FOR IT 

Education activist, former Miss SA and Wits Masters student Ntando Kunene echoed Mamabolo's view, saying the impact and outcomes of every election at any government level are largely determined by the number of youth who choose to take part.

“If we do not flood the voting stations to make decisions, it means we cannot complain about the state of the country when we have not participated. If we do not understand what a single cross means, then we do not care for the great ones to come after us. By voting, we are building a culture of people who will vote for decades to come.”

Kunene said young people must familiarise themselves with the manifestos of political parties and vote for those that resonate with them most.

She said their options were unlimited, considering SA's democracy allows citizens to start their own organisations or political parties if none of the existing ones speak to the future to which they aspire.

POWER OF THE VOTE

Lesego Louw, deputy president of the Wits SRC, said young people were only powerless without their votes.

“The history of this country dictates it is young people who have led us and continue to lead us through generational revolutions as agents of progress and bridges to communities,” she said. 

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